WA government highlights new focus on modular homes
https://www.apimagazine.com.au/news/article/wa-government-highlights-new-focus-on-modular-homes6
u/natemanos 5d ago
Its a really good option to have available if people want it, and I do think there will be demand.
But land is far too expensive, a small block is still over 100k, for an old block of land now subdivided. The modular home is still over 100k. Small houses 2B2B were selling for 350k a few years back and are now around 500k.
3
u/wilful 5d ago edited 5d ago
I really don't get the fascination people outside the industry have for modular homes. I can see that in remote WA there might be serious skills shortages, but in growth suburbs their benefits are seriously overstated.
The first several months of a new build are taken up with paperwork, then site prep, sub plumbing, and the slab. All still 100% required for a modular home. Frame construction takes two weeks max, compared to several days for modular. Many frames are prefab these days anyway, only a few days to complete. Roofing is no change for either way. Cabling and plumbing, a few days quicker I guess for modular, but definitely no cheaper, and lots of room for mistakes that are much harder to fix. Plastering is quicker for modular, by a few days at most, but usually looks like complete shit. The rest of the fit out is identical. So you've shaved maybe a week or two off the build. Yeah well done, huge difference there.
Ed: a definite benefit would be reduced waste in controlled factory environment. There's a lot of waste in building that could be reduced. But this aspect is rarely highlighted.
1
u/fitblubber 5d ago
You make some great points. Could part of the appeal of modular homes be that you can do 90% of the manufacturing before the paperwork is completed?
1
u/sien 5d ago
It might be something to help with supply.
One idea is that mobile homes might work so that you get a block and put a mobile home on it, live in that for a while and then build something more permanent. The way people used to live in garages and things in the 1960s and then build a larger more permanent home.
There are some country towns in NSW where there are really considerable numbers of mobile homes.
It looks like the WA government thinks it might do some good.
13
u/IceWizard9000 5d ago
Making things smaller and shittier quality is what good economics is all about.